Construction industry backs KT’s night-only work shift proposal

While offering a set of suggestions to develop the idea to ensure it would be efficiently implemented, a number of architects said a night-only shift “would help get rid of a lot of hassle and offer solutions to many unanswered questions in the fast growing industry in our booming cities.”

The architects were interviewed by this reporter on the sidelines of a symposium organised by Abu Dhabi Municipality on Monday to launch a new construction permit issuance system.

Murad Basile, an architect who is in charge of a consultancy office in Abu Dhabi, said that most of the construction works he carried out as a former contractor were made during the night because of temperature. “It is too hard for workers to carry out construction 'Night only' shift works during the searing summer months of June and July,” he said.

He added that international organisations had confirmed that work should be halted under weather condition of over 45 degrees Centigrade.

''The practical solution is to organise the night shift if the construction site is far away from the populated area so as not to annoy inhabitants living near the work location,'' he said.

According to him, the important positive aspect of night shift is that it safeguards the workers' health. There have been several cases of exhaustion resulting from the high degree of heat.

''Work at night during the hot months of June and July is better ......slight decline in worker's output can be overlooked for the sake of protecting his life as a real asset of companies,'' he maintained.

Another consultant-architect, Bassam Osman, pointed out to a host of aspects that should be discussed from the point of view of specialists in the contracting sector.

He said that a number of key points should be taken into account. ''High rise of temperature makes workers feel fatigued. What is demanded is that night shift - if applied -should not exceed 9 :00 pm,'' he said.

He pointed out that there are different categories of workers in the contracting sector with many workers toiling inside and not outdoor. Therefore they are not vulnerable to direct sunlight or scorching heat like the workers doing final touches on buildings, repairing air-conditioning or doing glass work. So, he affirmed that every activity should be classified according to this while offering other guarantees for outdoor workers.

Safety engineers at work site, he added, are the most capable of assessing the level of safety that should be provided to workers in these projects whether in terms of weather conditions or safety measures.

M.K. Mohamed Arif, a project architect with an Abu Dhabi-based consultantany bureau said the night shift system would be good. "Even in terms of the equipment being idle during the night... a night shift will be more viable," he noted.

He said certain measures should be taken, if the system is to be implemented, depending on the location of the project's site.

He said a special permit should be issued to each project separately.